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The Yankees spanked the Tigers 12-3 on an unseasonably cold, and rainy night in the Bronx. (The weather was so bad that the Yankees gave the fans tickets to another game, later in the season.) Alex Rodriguez drilled a solo home run to right field. In the fourth, he smacked a two-run dinger in the same general direction to put the home team ahead 3-0. That made him 4-4 lifetime (all four hits being homers) against Wilfredo Ledezma. Rodriguez leads the league in home runs (16), runs scored (40) and RBI (46). He’s second in the AL in slugging (.642), and tied for fourth in on-base percentage (.413). He’d make Ron Washington happy if he brought his bat out to the field with him to help him with those tricky hops (he botched another easy play last night, though he wasn’t charged win an error).

Mike Mussina was sharp, hitting his spots and changing speeds nicely. The immediate question was whether they were going to be able to get the game in. The Yanks scored ten runs in the fourth and fifth inning, the rain contiued to fall all night, and nine innings were played. Jorge Posada added two dingers of his own, and Gary Sheffield and Robinson Cano went deep too (It was the first of Cano’s Major League career).

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There is no secret to the Yankees approach to Pedro Martinez–or any dominant pitcher, for that matter. You hang in there, keep the game close, hope to chase him by the late innings, and win the game against the bullpen. The Yankees have spoiled many good performances by Martinez over the past five, six years. True to form, the Yanks did it again yesterday, ruining a fine outing by Pedro, and beating the Mets, 5-3.

Alex Rodriguez is doing everything to live up to his new moniker. In the bottom of the second inning, with men on second and third, Martinez cued a soft ground ball to Rodriguez. It looked like a sure out, but the ball knocked off the side of Rodriguez’s glove, a run scored and everybody was safe. Another run came home on an RBI single, as Rodriguez’s muff led to two unearned runs. (Somewhere, Cliff Corcoran was slapping his forehead in disgust.) Cliff Floyd added a solo bomb off of Pavano the next inning and the Mets looked to be in good shape behind an effective Pedro, who was resuced from his only real jam in the first by a terrific diving catch which sent David Wright into the stands.

Several key faces were missing in action yesterday, as Carlos Beltran, Derek Jeter and Gary Sheffield all sat due to injury. Dig this: The Yankees 7-8-9 hitters were John Flaherty, Rey Sanchez and the pitcher. Womack, Williams and Matsui were the starting outfield. Yipe. This was far from an imposing line-up and Martinez took advantage. Rodriguez got one of his runs back with an RBI single (he finished the day 2-4 with a walk), and then got an opportunity for redemption in the top of the eighth. Errors by Wright and Reyes put runners on first and second wtih one out (Womack was the lead runner, and Derek Jeter, pinch-running, was behind him). On the first pitch, Womack and Jeter took off and easily pulled-off a double steal.

Here it was, but Rodriguez fouled out. Groan. Matsui followed though, and took a fastball that was low-and-away beautifully to left field for a two-run single. The man is tough in a big spot, right? The game was tied. Bernie Williams was next and he stroked a double into right, scoring Matsui. That was all the Yankees would need. They tacked on a run in the ninth, as Stanton-Gordon and Rivera set the Mets down without any drama to end it. Pavano pitched a solid game and the Yankees out-lasted the Mets to win the series. Or, if you want to be crass about it, the Mets just out-sucked the Yankees. Neither team play particularly well over the weekend, and if the Friday and Sunday games were close, possessing a degree of tension, they were not pretty.

But hey, but looks are overrated. Just ask Rodriguez.

The pitching match-up tonight has all the makings of one hellacious game. We’ll see if Brown has anything at all against the boys from Queens. (Once again, I’m not holding my breath.) As it turns out I was interviewed for a puff-piece that will appear on the Channel 11 News tonight after the game. Perhaps I’ll have a dopey sound bite or two. The angle is Met fans v. Yankee fans: Who is winning the war on the web? Jeez, I didn’t know we were fighting. But hey, anything to keep the Subway Serious fresh, right?

Go Yanks.

It looks like it’s going to be a soggy couple of days in New York, and yo, like Flava Flav once said, I ain’t got nothing for ya, man. I don’t know what to say about the Subway Serious other than I hope the Yanks win two-of-three and that the games are exciting. Otherwise, I’m numb to the canned hype at this point. I just can’t get geeked about this match up, dude. I don’t know, maybe it’s just me. But the Mets just are not the Red Sox.

In other news, Joel Sherman reports that the Yankees are interested in keeping GM Brian Cashman:

[Yankees general partner, Steve] Swindall revealed to The Post that he opened extension talks with Cashman during spring training, and that Cashman “acknowledged he wants to come back.” Cashman verified the exchange and that his “preference is to return.” Both men said negotiations have been tabled because Cashman wants to focus right now on remedying the team’s deficiencies.

Meanwhile, over at the Times, Tyler Kepner has a nice puff piece on Joe Girardi, the Yankees’ bench coach.

All good things come to an end, and the Yankees winning streak ended ugly last night, as three errors (Womack, Sheff, and a crucial one by Jorge Posada) resulted in a 7-6 Seattle win. The Bombers had a chance in the ninth, but Jason Giambi struck out with the bases loaded to end the game. I didn’t stay up to watch, so I can’t speak about the particulars, but I gather it was a discourgaing way to cap off an impressive road trip. Regardless, the Yanks are in much better shape today than they were two weeks ago.

The Subway Serious is on this weekend against the Mets. I’m not one for manufactured excitement. As a result, the so-called rivalry with the Mets doesn’t get me amped. However, I’m in the minority on this one, and Shea stadium will be plenty packed. I’ve watched the Mets some this year and think they are an enjoyable team. I’ve always liked Piazza and Cliff Floyd. Beltran is a star, and David Wright is an appealing young player. If their pitching keeps them in the game, they should be a good match for the Yanks. Pedro Martinez has been pushed back to Sunday, so Victor Zambrano gets the nod on Friday night. He’ll go against Kevin Brown. That should be a wild one.

Where’s the beef? Right here, dog. Yankee sirloin was in full effect last night, as Carl Pavano, Jason Giambi, Alex Rodriguez, and Jorge Posada powered the Bronx Bombers to their tenth straight victory. A night after hitting a grand slam, Bernie Williams was back on the bench. Characteristically, he took the news in stride, telling the Daily News:

“At this point in my career, who cares what I do?” he said. “All we care about is winning games and getting to the postseason.”

Speaking of meat, today, is the 18th. As a kid, this day had special meaning for me, because it’s Reggie Jackson’s birthday. Funny, how other people’s birthdays can make such an impression on you when you are growing up. For the rest of my life, I’ll never forget how meaningful this day used to be for me.

On an afternoon when Randy Johnson allowed three first inning runs, and ended the game with no strike outs, Tino Martinez powered a Yankee comeback and Jason Giambi had the game-winning hit as the Bombers extended their winning streak to eight, beating Oakland, 6-4. They are now 19-19, and the win was the 1,800th of Joe Torre’s career. Johnson labored through the first four innings, and lasted through six; this was the longest outing of his career withouth recording a K.

But he was helped out by Tino Martinez, who hit two line-drive home runs to right field. Derek Jeter had three hits, and Robinson Cano had four (giving him nine for the three-game set), and Tony Womack swiped four bases for the second time this season. Though he struck out twice with men on base, Alex Rodriguez made one of the crucial plays of the game. With one out in the top of the seventh, Rodriguez walked. Tino Martinez followed and popped out to the third baseman Keith Ginter deep in foul territory. Rodriguez caught Ginter off guard, tagged up, and slid into second base safely. It was the kind of play that has made Derek Jeter an icon in New York. Next, Jorge Posada was intentionally walked, and then Giambi whacked Rincon’s first pitch into the right field corner for a run-scoring double.

Giambi did not talk to the media after the game, but he had a good day on the field. In addition to his clutch double, he hit the ball well in two other times. Sturtze, Gordon, and Rivera set the struggling A’s down in order over the final three innings, as the Yanks have finally reached even.

It was shortly after eleven o’clock last night when I went to get the car. My cousin’s wedding reception, which was held in a cool French bistro on 5th avenue in Park Slope, Brooklyn, made for a lovely evening. The car was a couple of blocks away and when I turned on the radio, the Yanks were comfortably ahead, 15-3 (Rodriguez, Jeter, Posada, and yes, that man Martinez, all homered, while Godzilla had four hits, including three doubles.) I’ll leave the real recap to Cliff, who I assume watched it. Instead, here are some quick links to what’s what in the Sunday papers:

Things might be going from bad to worse for Jason Giambi. Last night, a fan threw a beer on him. He also spoke to reporters and told them how “pissed” he was about being asked to go to the minors. This does not bode well for him. Giving the Boss an excuse to lay into him publicly is not wise.

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Mike Mussina pitched seven strong innings and the Yankee offense jumped on Rich Harden early as the Yankees cruised to a 9-4 victory last night in Oakland. Jason Giambi got the nod at DH, and went 1-4; Robinson Cano had three hits including two doubles. The Yanks have now won six straight. I’m between my nephew’s birthday part and my cousin’s wedding, so I don’t have time to get into anything in detail. One thing that I was thinking about last night though was all the premature talk earlier this season about Matsui being a strong candidate for MVP. I’ve heard a lot of people say that he’s been the Yankees’ best player since the start of the 2004 season. He’s been solid, no doubt, but nobody has been better in that time span that Gary Sheffield. (Man, was his dinger off a Harden heater in the first last night sweet.)

Brown goes tonight. What are the odds he can string together two good outings in a row?

The Yankees’ mini-hot streak will be put to the test tonight as they face Rich Harden in Oakland. The A’s have dropped five straight. Harden sure looked good to me last Sunday, but Ken Arneson assured me that it was one of Harden’s worst performances of the year. Yikes. Hopefully, the Bombers can win the weekend series, then take two-of-three in Seattle before they return to New York to face the Mets. (A week from now, we could be looking at Pedro v. Johnson: mmmm, juicy.)

But let’s not get ahead of ourselves. First up is the tough young, Mr. Harden. After throwing a lot of pitches in his shut out last Saturday, Mike Mussina is back on the hill for the Yanks. It will be interesting to see how he responds.

Just a quick personal note here. Cliff and I want to send our best wishes to Jay Jaffe and his beautiful (not to mention funny!) bride Andra, as they tie they knot in Milwaukee this weekend. Our thoughts are with you guys. Have a beer and a brat for us. Here’s wishing you a long, and happy life together.

In Bill Cosby’s famous “Go Carts” routine, he talked about the importance of having good theme music when racing. Ballplayers love theme music too, as they get to choose four-bar clips that are played when they come to bat in their home parks. Actually, I’m assuming they get to pick their songs. I’m pretty sure they Yankees do anyway. The selections usually are not that interesting: Derek Jeter goes for the latest club hits, Paul O’Neill used to love meat-and-potatoes classic rock cuts. Some guys actually have taste: Chuck Knoblauch appropriately used BDP’s “South Bronx” before his at bats, and David Justice nabbed another 1986 Hip Hop classic, “Eric B is President” by Eric B and Rakim. Other players have a sense of humor–Dave Dellucci goes for the “Godfather” theme down in Texas. (Funny music is so underrated at the ballpark. For instance, a couple of years ago, when Rickey Henderson was on the Mets, he was thrown out trying to steal second one day in Pittsburgh. As he jogged off the field, the organist played “Old Grey Mare.” Wise-ass organists rock.)

Last year, Hideki Matsui used “Get Back” and “Day Tripper” by the Beatles, which I thought was amusing simply because it sounded so out-of-place. But it fit Matsui’s personality well. This year, Matsui is using “The Immigrant Song” by Led Zeppelin, which is outstandingly random. I’m really loving that. It got me to thinking, wouldn’t it be fun to be able to play DJ for your team? So I sat down and came up with a playlist for the Yankees. (Cliff is working on the bench and will have his picks up later today.) Some of the songs are really obvious, used because they have a good opening, others because the title works.

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Better late than never, here are some photographs from last Sunday’s game vs. Oakland. (Click on photo’s for a bigger version.)

Emily and Me

Road Island Red: Bobby Kielty

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The Yanks and M’s not only played like they had a plane to catch yesterday, but like they had all been out way too late the night before. In a comedy of errors at the Stadium, the Bombers outlasted and outblasted the hapless Mariners, 13-9 to win their fifth straight game. Neither starting pitcher had much and the score was 9-9 after four innings. Alex Rodriguez made two errors, which led to six Seattle runs; Carl Pavano allowed four dingers; for the second time this spring, Jorge Posada Cadillac’d what he thought was a home run into a single; Richie Sexton and Brett Boone kicked the ball around all day, and Shigetoshi Hasegawa perfected Jackie Chan’s Drunken Style during a seventh inning rundown. (Even better was when my better half told me about the play and called Hasegawa “Hitchagoowoo Miniyawa.”)

Tino Martinez homered for the fifth game in a row, one of eight balls that left the yard (four by Seattle, four by New York). According to Michael Kay, Bernie Williams and the Yankees are now calling Martinez, C.C. As in Curtain Call. Tony Womack swiped four bases, and the Yankees’ bullpen was excellent over the last five innings of the game. While it may not have been pretty, the Yanks have to be pleased with the result. They head for the west coast feeling a bunch better than they did when they started this home stand, that’s for sure.

Chien Ming Wang won his first Major League game last night, pushing the Yankees’ winning streak to four, as the Bombers beat Seattle, 7-4. It was not an especially riveting game–other than some nifty running catches by all three Seattle outfielders–but for Yankee fans it was more than satisfying. When pitching out of the stretch, Wang holds his hands above his head and almost comes to a complete stop. It’s like he momentarily forgets what he’s supposed to do next. I don’t know that I can recall seeing another pitcher with a wind-up that starts so slowly. Julio Mateo, who replaced Aaron Sele in the third inning, had a quicker delivery, but the man took forever between pitches. The deliberate styles of the pitching gave the game a lathargic pace. But after the Yanks jumped out to a 7-2 lead, Wang was impressive, working through the middle innings easily. He was excellent from the fourth through seventh innings.

Wang left the game to a nice hand with one out in the eighth. Tom Gordon replaced him, walked a batter and then allowed a two-run double to Brett Boone. The ball missed being a home run by about three feet. This meant that Mariano Rivera would be called on in the ninth. He struck the first man out, and then lost an 11-pitch battle and gave up a single. But Rivera got Ichiro to pop out to left (Suzuki helped Mo out, swinging at a 2-0 pitch that was up in the strike zone.), and Randy Winn to ground out. And that, was that. Tino Martinez homered for the fourth consecutive game, while John Flaherty and Robinson Cano hit the ball hard all evening, powering the Bombers’ offense. It was nice to see Cano drive the ball and have something to show for it. The Yankees have gotten healthy playing against the A’s and the M’s. They’ve won two series in a row, and improved their record to 15-19.

Slip Up

We can forget about Felix Rodriguez: trade bait. Rodriguez tore cartilage in his left knee getting out of the shower or the hot tub, according to reports. It’s not certain if he’ll need surgery. He could be out for up to six weeks. Infielder Russ Johnson will replace him on the Yankees’ roster.

I wonder if fans were more sympathetic toward aging players before the free agency era. I seriously doubt it. I’m sure fans have always given struggling players a hard time. These days, it’s common to hear a player’s salary come up when he’s slumping horribly. “You make $15 million, throw a strike, get a hit, for crying out loud.” If a player isn’t producing, it must be because he’s a fat cat, too rich and complacent for his own good. Fans have a right to their opinion of course, but often I feel as if this attitude discounts just how difficult it is to play baseball, particularly for players who are over 35 years old. I get as frustrated as the next guy at Kevin Brown, but I feel that it’s easy for me to forget how tough it must be for a guy his age to continue to compete at an elite level. Physically, and mentally, playing baseball into your late thirties must be an incredible challenge. In an article that appeared yesterday in The Baltimore Sun, Laura Vecsey profiled Rafael Palmeiro:

Palmeiro’s eyes dart here and there. He talks with a mix of passion, longing, anxiety.

…But his head is down. His frustration is evident. His disappointment over disappointing his teammates and fans is obvious.

Anxiety is the word that stuck with me. In the third inning of last night’s game with the Yanks trailing 2-0, Bernie Williams came to the plate with men on second and third and nobody out. He popped out to shallow right field, failing to drive in a run. The camera followed Williams as he returned to the dugout. His mouth was tensed, and he clasped his hands together as if he were praying. But the gesture didn’t look like a prayer, it looked as if it was everything he could do to prevent himself from losing his temper. It was just a moment, but it spoke to the kind of anxiety he must be experiencing internally. Moments later, he was sitting next to Don Mattingly, a placid look on his face, talking about the at bat.

Hideki Matsui, mired in the worst slump of his Major League career, must be able to relate. But Matsui still has several good years left in him. For Palmeiro, who homered last night, and Williams, time is running out. The pressure is also on Jason Giambi, who was evidentally approached by Joe Torre and Brian Cashman yesterday about possibly heading to the minor leagues to help his lagging confidence. Giambi insisted that working with Mattingly would be better for him at this time than a trip to Columbus.

Torre told the Daily News:

“I’m a firm believer of the mind ruling the body, and it’s not good right now,” Torre said. “I saw a calmness (before), but calmness in spring training is one thing. When you’re 0-for-4 during the season, it takes on a different face. He was more patient in spring training. Physically, he had a little more life in his body, and I blame the psychological stuff.”

Giambi was treated well by Yankee fans early this spring. But any sense of goodwill has run out, and the reaction to Giambi is getting downright nasty. No matter what happens, it doesn’t feel like Giambi’s career in New York is going to have a happy ending.

Sele vs. Wang should mean that there will be some runs scored in the Bronx tonight. (Sele is one of those pitchers I always expect the Bombers to do well against; objects tend to get thrown when he shuts them down.) It should get chilly once the sun goes down, but this has one of those spring days in New York that you just want to mint. It is crisp and clean, no humidity to speak of, with a refreshing breeze, that just makes me happy to be alive. With a little less wind, this would be the ideal day to take a walk over the Brooklyn Bridge. But who am I kidding? Like you need an excuse to walk over that great bridge.

Let’s Go Yanks!

Our labelmate Mike Carminati is undertaking a cool data-gathering project. He wants to assemble all of the free agent contract information from 1976-1984. Mike still has a ways to go, but he’s already compiled a boatload of great information. If anyone can help him fill in the blanks, head on over to his site and drop him a line. Meanwhile, here is a list of the Yankee free agent signings (for players who amassed ten Win Shares the year before inking a new deal):

Rudy May? Rawly Eastwick? Ah, dem wuz duh daze. Thanks, Mike.

Fortunately, Cliff has done his usual fine job of recapping a game. Emily and I were also at the stadium, but our seats were so spectacular that is was actually hard to keep perspective on what was happening on the field. The seats my mom scored for us were just up the left field line from the visitor’s dugout, seats 11 and 12, in the front row! I mean, you’ve got to be kidding me, right? One step forward and we’re on the field. Third base coaches Ron Washington and Luis Sojo were close enough to touch, and Eric Chavez and Alex Rodriguez weren’t too far off either.

The seats were memorable, though they would not be my first choice if I could sit anywhere I’d like. Being so close, you lose perspective on the entire field a bit. More than that, you have to be alert on every pitch, in case a foul ball comes zipping your way. The first time Sheffield was up, he rocketed a foul ball over our heads and it scared the bejesus out of me. After that, I literally crouched down each time he came to bat. I didn’t bring my mitt, but we were lucky enough to have a guy sitting next to us who did. To be honest, I was more concerned about Emily than I was about myself. But you really had to be on guard. No keeping score, or drifting off here. We were in the firing line.

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So Cliff is taking his mom to the ballpark today. Emily and I were lucky enough to be given two cherce corporate tickets–I’m not sure where they are, but they seem pretty fancy, as they come with V.I.P. parking pass, and two vouchers for the Stadium Club–by me mudda, who scored them through her office. She told me it’s her Mother’s Day gift to me. I told her to expect a dozen roses on my birthday.

Bronx Banter will be in the house, front and center to witness Kevin Brown’s latest outing. Pardon me if I’m not overcome with confidence, especially with young Mr. Harden going for the A’s. Still, stranger things have happened. And for now, it’s still nice that Mike Mussina tossed a complete-game shutout yesterday.

Rich Lederer, president of the Bert Blyleven Fan Club, sent me the following bit of Mussina information last night:

ACTIVE LEADERS IN CAREER SHUTOUTS

SHUTOUTS            SHO
1  Roger Clemens        46
2  Randy Johnson        37
3  Greg Maddux         35
4  Tom Glavine         23
5  Mike Mussina         22

The top three are first-ballot Hall of Famers. The fourth has a good shot at the HOF. And then there was Mike Mussina, the Bert Blyleven of modern-day pitchers.

Good call, Rich.

Hope everyone has a nice Sunday. Let’s Go Yan-Kees!